


Across The Hall

by the_fandom_life



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: AU, Businessmen, Comfort, Ex Military Kylo, F/M, Female Finn, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Hux Has No Chill, Hux Might Hit up Poe, Kicking a deadbeat boyfriend out, Kylo Ren Redemption, Later Romance, Lesbian Rey (Star Wars), Lowkey Gay Hux, M/M, Neighbours, Older Man/Younger Woman, Panic Attacks, Rey is readers friend, Rey is suspicious of Kylo, Slow Burn, Snoke owns a big company, Softie Kylo, Surgeon Hux, ex boyfriends, tw abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-07
Updated: 2018-04-12
Packaged: 2018-12-24 07:30:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 9,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12007968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_fandom_life/pseuds/the_fandom_life
Summary: The Knight Of Ren is a business man- and your new friend after a late night fiasco.(AU- "real world" Kylo & Hux)





	1. The Beginning of An End

“Where are you going?” your now ex-boyfriend,Tyler, yelled after you on the street. You had broken up with him over the fact that he was stealing from you and full of the lies that you no longer could stand. You had left a nice dinner that he had promised to pay for, which of course didn’t happen.  
“To my apartment you deadbeat. The one you no longer live in.” You retorted, pulling your thin jacket tighter around your body.  
“You can’t kick me out of place I have keys to.” He was catching up to you, his longer legs quickly defeating your fast stride.  
You looked away from him. “Why do you think I had the locks changed?” A scoff sounded from next to you.   
“Are you kidding me right now? After all we’ve been through, you chose NOW to pull this shit on me?” Tyler grasped your arm harshly, pulling you both to a studdering halt. “You aren’t going to break up with me like this.” His grip grew tighter.   
“Hey!- Stop- That really hurts!” You hissed, attempting to rip your arm from him.   
He held tighter, refusing to let you slip away. “No, we’re figuring this out and then we’re going home!” You were pulled closer towards him, and he was now practically screaming in your face. You squirmed for some sort of relief of his grip, but none came. He continued ranting about all he’d done for you, about how he was the best thing to ever happen to you and the like.   
Nearly in tears, you had enough. “Shut up you pretentious prick!” Tyler stopped mid rant to look at you in disbelief that you had interrupted his speech. You usually just let him go on but this time was too personal. “I’m done with your bullying and fake love. Let the hell go you creep.” His grip had lessened and you wrenched your arm away, taking a step back. “I’m done with you, your games, and your baggage you always want me to carry. We’re through. These two years have been torture and I’m done. Honestly.” You were heaving, a weight lifted from your chest.  
The weight crashed right back down once the rage filled Tyler's eyes. He stood tall, looming over you. “How dare you talk to me like that?” You were trying to stammer a quick apology when his hand crashed into your face in a hard slap. Your eyes blinked multiple times, registering what had just happened.   
Although Tyler was usually emotionally abusive, he hadn’t ever been physical with you. Your body began to shake unconsciously and your own fingers raised up to brush against the bruising flesh. Tyler’s face fell, realising just what he had done, face full of remorse. You took a few steps back from him, nearly falling backwards onto the pavement. He followed suit, hands reaching out to grasp you in some manner, to which you flinched and turned away.   
“I-I didn’t- I didn’t mean it!” Tyler was stammering, trying to excuse his actions. You swallowed a sob and turned on your heels. You began walking away, which turned into running when Tyler tried to follow suit. You dashed around buildings and through alleys, using the fire escape to enter your building floor, and scurrying to your room. The restaurant hadn’t been far, so the mad escape was easier than if not.   
You locked every entrance to the apartment, and hid out in your bedroom. The sobs you contained earlier wracked your body, strangled cries emitting when you opened your mouth. Tears flew violently down your face, soaking the bed sheets and your pillow. You kicked the pillow he used to the floor, burying yourself deep in your covers. A few knocks sounded at your door, and you ignored them. You thought to yourself that it was more than likely Tyler hoping to produce a lengthy apology riddled with ways it had been your fault. You heard the doorknob rattle a few times and sat up. With the blanket wrapped around you, you stood and waddled to the apartment door, looking at the knob jiggle. Wiping away your dripping nose, you looked through the little peephole to see if it was Tyler waiting outside your door. Much to your surprise, it wasn’t.


	2. The Meeting

   

There was a dark haired man with a large nose and brown eyes knocking on your door and jiggling the handle. You recognized him vaguely as the guy in the apartment across from your, that he shared with a ginger his same age and their cat. You had tried to talk to him and welcome them when they moved in, but you only received polite smiles and greetings.You cleared your throat and unlocked the deadbolt and the handle. The man opened the door and you stared at him for a moment. You realized he must’ve heard your wailing previous, and that you probably woke him up, as he was in a torn old shirt and flannel pyjama bottoms. 

He looked at you, probably noticing how puffy your eyes were, how your nose was dripping, and the fact that you were swathed in a fluffy comforter. “Is he here?” 

The question was vague until it dawned on you that he meant Tyler. Which means he 

also bore witness to all of the late night screaming fits and fights Tyler would start. “No.” Your voice cracked. You realized upon being in closer proximity that he was older than you by at least a few years. 

His expression softened. “I heard you crying, I’m just across the hall,” he gestured to the door, “Do you want to come get some tea or whatever?” You nodded yes and went into your room to grab your keys. The man from across the hall, whose name you did not know, followed you inside, eyeing the hallway suspiciously for who you could only assume was Tyler. He stayed near the door, and watched you rifle through your things for the keys you had flung. You spied them on the floor near your couch and snacthed them up. The thick blanket you had dragged around your body remained in place, for some level of comfort. 

The two of you walked the short distance to his apartment, and he just opened it, without unlocking or anything. His apartment was pretty dull, with a few personal items scattered as decoration here and there. There was a very modern theme within the apartment, with art that looked first edition and expensive on the walls. The couch that occupied much of the living room was plush and real leather. You hadn’t even known someone so wealthy lived in your building. The man walked to what you assumed was a bedroom and poked his head inside the already cracked door. There was murmuring and you could tell that they were speaking in reference to you. Something small and fuzzy sauntered out of the room, and you saw it was a fluffy little cat. You sat on the hardwood floor and the cat bounced over to you, rubbing its head against your blanket affectionately. 

You were very involved with petting the cat, to the point that you didn’t even realise that the two men had drifted from the bedroom and into the living room. One of them cleared their throats and you looked up. The ginger you had only seen in passing and the man who had invited you were now standing awkwardly in front of you. The cat had settled itself on your lap and you were just lightly stroking it. The ginger smiled down at you, a small curt sort of thing. He squatted and held his hand out to pet the cat. 

“It seems you’ve found Millicent.” His voice sounded. You noticed he had an accent, English maybe. “I’m Hux, while we’re doing introductions.”

“I’m Y/N.” you took the hint to tell them your name. You continued to stroke the cat until it waddled away. Hux and the other man, who’s name you still didn’t know, made their way into the connected kitchen and mumbled to one another as they got various things from cabinets and the fridge. You assumed they were making the tea that you were offered. You stood, setting your comforter in a messy pile over the back of their couch, standing awkwardly for them to once again interact with you. You wandered over to a small bookshelf on the wall where some books where, and a photo was placed. You looked at the photo, and saw Hux with his friend, and some blonde. You were looking at the picture in thought when Hux tapped your shoulder. You jumped a little before settling again. You turned around to face him as he opened his mouth to say something. 

“Ben has your tea ready.” He nodded to the kitchen, where (you could only assume) Ben was. You nodded and made your way to the kitchen island where Ben was sitting with two mugs 

of steaming liquid. 

Hux returned to his room, and shut the door. You sat next to Ben, gratefully accepting the mug he handed you as you were seated. “Thanks, Ben.” he straightened in posture, and stopped for a moment. 

“You’re… You’re welcome, Y/N.” he pursed his lips and his fist clenched. 

“Is something wrong?” You readied yourself to be yelled at or to have to dash back to your own apartment. Ben softened, and went back to the same relaxed person you had met only a little while prior. 

“Hux is a prick sometimes, I swear he only exists to spite me.” He chuckled. “I don’t go by Ben anymore. You can call me that if you want, but I really prefer Kylo.” You nodded. 

“If Kylo is what you go by then that’s what I’ll call you.” You smiled at Kylo/Ben and he returned the gesture. You finally took a decent sip of the tea, to find it absolutely delicious and the perfect temperature. “This is really good tea, thank you, Kylo.” You said before taking another swig. 

He just laughed at you and said a thanks. You fell into a comfortable silence, sipping tea together for a while, and you felt an enormous amount more comfortable than you had in your own apartment. Until you heard the yelling outside. 


	3. A settling

The commotion outside of Kylo’s apartment was getting louder and you realized who it was: Tyler. He was screaming for you to let him in, and how you were breaking his heart. You slumped, taking a deep breath before sliding off the kitchen stool. You knew Tyler wouldn’t be appeased until you let him into the apartment to at least talk. You were terrified of what he would do, but didn’t want to embarrass yourself any farther than you already had. You were shaking as you took steps over to Kylo’s door. He trailed behind you. 

“Y/N?” Kylo laid a large hand on your shoulder, “Where you going? There’s some drunk out there.” 

“That’s ...him.” You looked at your bare feet, body still shaking even under Kylo’s touch. “I have to-” 

“He hit you. I’m not just going to let you go out there yourself, much less at all. I’m going to have Hux give him a word or two.” Kylo chuckled. “I know practically nothing about you but I can tell you that going out there is probably the stupidest decision you can make at the moment.” 

You knew he was right, so you flashed him the tiniest of smiles. “You’re….. Right. Thank you. I’m just so used to cleaning up messes I didn’t make and…….” Tears formed in the corners of your eyes, and you shook a little bit more before Kylo pulled you closer to him, into an awkward half hug. 

Hux, as if on cue, marched out of his bedroom, in only a tank top and his boxers, and threw open the front door. He furiously began giving Tyler a telling-off as if he was a naughty child. Tyler attempted to yell in Hux’s face, but Hux wouldn’t even give him the second to open his mouth. You peered around the corner of the door to watch in amusement. You listened to Hux’s words, realizing he was lying about where you were and how ridiculous Tyler'd been to raise a fuss over someone not even present. You ducked back behind the door to giggle when you saw Tyler’s face turn very bright red and see him apologise for his actions and begin to slink away. When Hux finally returned to the room, you were so happy you could have kissed him. 

You didn’t kiss him, for fear of making him uncomfortable, and opted to tell him a quiet thank you as he went into his bedroom. You were still shaking a little bit when you moved to sit on the modern couch, chewing your lip thinking about what would happen in the morning when Tyler would return. Kylo sat on the opposite end of the couch with his cup of tea and didn’t say anything for a while. You both just sat in a comfortable silence, and he sipped his drink. 

After a while of silence, Kylo looked at you. “Do you want to talk about him?” You shook your head no. 

“I think it’s a little too unreal right now.” You gave him a glance, hoping he’d understand. A comforting smile was thrown at you, and your body seemed to relax a significant amount.

“No big deal. Honestly,” Kylo laughed, “That piece of trash is lucky that this wasn’t a weeknight. Hux would have had him on the floor.” He chuckled into his cup. You laughed a bit to 

yourself, the idea of Tyler having his butt handed to him was very pleasing thought. 

Millicent had slunk out of Hux’s room during the commotion, and was now playfully rubbing herself against your leg. You leaned down to pet the fluffy cat, noting how her fur matched Hux’s hair. You wondered what a Kylo lookalike cat would be like. You were getting tired, and you didn’t know what to do, as you were still in your dress from the night. Pondering, you wondered if it would be a risk to go across the hall for pyjamas. You continued to pet the cat, but figured it best to address the issue with Kylo before you had to sleep in your dress like a whore. 

“Hey, um, Kylo?” You turned to him. He perked up. 

“Yeah?” 

“Do you think you could walk back with me to my apartment?”

His brow furrowed. “Why?” 

“I need pyjamas and sleep…. Like normal people.” 

His eyes widened in realisation. “Ohhh…” He chewed his lip. “Do you want to stay here? I can give you an old shirt and shorts of Hux’s and my bed.” 

“That’s so sweet of you. I’ll take the clothes but I’m fine here on the couch. It’s your apartment, not mine. Thank you though.” You smiled over at him. He stood from the couch, stretching upwards onto his heels, arms high into the air. His shirt rose and you glimpsed briefly at his toned torso. You looked away quickly, standing as well.

“If you’ll follow me.” Kylo stated before turning and walking towards what you assumed was his bedroom. He opened the door and flicked on the light, to which you saw a collage of black and grey colours on everything. Grey walls, black sheets, black desk, grey curtains, etc. You followed him over the dresser off to the right of the door, where he opened a drawer and ruffled through the monotonous clothing inside. He pulled out a shift and held it up to your body, considering it on whether or not it was a close size. He tossed this at you with a pair of workout shorts that were rather girly. 

You were smirking at the pair, to which Kylo’s face flushed a tad. “They’re from an old girlfriend, not mine.” 

You laughed. “Sure, sure. Now where’s the bathroom?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Does this seem to move to fast? The pace should slow down within the next few chapters, but do you think that there's too much Kylo/Reader too quick?
> 
> A/N YALL IM SO SORRY I ACCIDENTALLY FUCKED UP AND COPIED CH 2 HERE WHEN EDITING SRY


	4. The Morning After

The clothes had fit almost perfect, with the shirt just being a bit too big. That didn’t matter though, as you were so tired and so comfortable cuddled up in your blanket on the plush couch. Kylo more than once tried to insist for you to take his bed, but you refused. The couch was plenty perfect. You watched Kylo turn off the living room light, and closed your eyes when he shut his bedroom door. Laying there, you thought of how the night had changed so strangely on you.  The fight with Tyler, running away from him, and your neighbors rescuing you. You were incredibly stressed for the interactions you would have with him, and the process of cutting him out of your life like you had never been previously able to. 

When you drifted off, you dreamt of dragon chasing you, but the dragon was Tyler. Kylo and Hux had come to your rescue, and after the dragon was slain Kylo came to your side and….. You woke up without the dream ending. You blinked multiple times and reached drowsily to wipe your eyes. You briefly forgot that you had been in your neighbor’s apartment instead of yours, which confused you at first. Sitting up, you looked groggily around the apartment and saw that Kylo and Hux were at their kitchen bar. They were chatting over some food and drinks and you stood up to stretch out after sleeping on the couch. Hux looked over at you and greeted you. 

“Morning, Y/N. Would you like some breakfast?” He called across the apartment. 

“Yes please.” You said, your voice thick with sleep. You walked slowly over to the counter and took a seat next to where Hux’s food was. He had gotten up to prepare you a plate. You noticed that both men were completely dressed, Hux in a nice sweater and a pair of dress pants, Kylo with a button down (sleeves rolled) and tight jeans. You felt very underdressed. There was no question that they had been up much longer than you thought previously. 

Hux set your breakfast down, eggs and toast, and you thanked him. You happily crunched on the toast and ate your eggs a bit slower than you would usually. They chatted politely with you, a few personal questions, but mainly things about how you were doing after the catastrophe from the previous night. You could feel the fat bruise on your face, no doubt a heavy purple. You spaced out for a moment, thinking about the bruise when Hux waved his hand in your face. 

“Y/N? Did you hear me?” 

“Huh? What- no, sorry.” You said sheepishly. They both chuckled. 

“I asked what you do for a living.” Hux raised his brows in interest. 

“Oh. Well, I’m looking at the moment for something better, but I work at a cafe on Main Street.” you answered. 

They looked bewildered at you. “Not to be rude,” Kylo piped up, “but how the hell can you afford that apartment?” 

You laughed. “I work like, forty hours a week, sometimes more, and I’m paid very well. It’s a popular shop.” The two men gave you a surprised look. “I mean, c’mon, ten bucks an hour plus ridiculous tips? It’s a great job.” You took a bite of your toast. “Where do you guys work?”

Hux answered first. “I’m the head surgeon at St. Mary’s downtown.”

“I’m the head of accounting at the First Order law company.” Kylo shrugged as he chewed a bite of eggs. You nearly choked on your toast. They gave you a strange look,  and you gave them an uneasy smile. “Are you okay?” 

“Uh, yeah. Just didn’t think you guys were such hotshots.” You looked down at your plate to avoid eye contact. “No wonder you guys were weird when I said I work at a cafe.” Hux opened his mouth to retort, but you cut him off with a laugh. “At least now I know that I’ll be in great hands if I need a doctor at 2 am.” The three of you laughed, and as your smile stretched, your bruise began to ache. 

“Oh, speaking of which, let me see that bruise.” Hux reached over to your face, lightly brushing his fingers over the damaged flesh. “Hm. Let me go get some things.” 

Kylo burst out laughing. “Long hours not enough, Armie? Gotta bring work home too?” Hux flipped him off as he slunk back into his bedroom. You heard some shuffling around before Hux once again returned. He was holding some things in his hands, which you assumed were medical supplies.

He stood now in front of your stool and asked you to close your eyes. You obeyed, and felt the tiny flashlight on your face. Hux was checking the swelling, and how deep the bruise was, etc. All things he had done in the past. Once he was done with his check up, he handed you a bottle of pills. Ibuprofen. 

“It’ll help reduce the swelling and pain.” was all he said before returning the other items to  his bedroom. 

“Thank you!” You called as he entered his room. You turned to Kylo. “I don’t want to be rude but I’ll be going now. There’s some things I need to attend to in my own apartment.” 

“No, no, by all means, you’re fine,” he chuckled, “And besides, I have some paperwork and Maker only knows what shit Hux is up to. I’ll see you later.” 

You smiled. “Thanks, again.” You snatched your keys and headed to the door. 

“No problem.” He met you at the door, and saw you off. 

Once in the sanctuary of your apartment, you sighed and with your back against the door, you slid down to sit on the floor. You had a lot of work to do. 

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

After maybe an hour of cleaning, you got pretty lonely. Not to mention ever prevalent fear looming behind you that Tyler would randomly appear to harass you. You went into your bedroom, grabbing your phone as you sat on your bed. You sent a text to your best friend, Rey, to help you gather Tyler’s items and clean your apartment. She messaged back a short while later that she would be over as soon as she could. You sat up, leaning on the palms of your hands for support. You didn’t want to clean again until Rey arrived so you decided to dig around for your laptop, finding it under some clean or dirty clothes (you weren’t certain).

You powered it up, waiting on the login screen to appear. You type in your password, and went to the browser. Boredly, you looked through sites and decided at some point to look up your neighbours across the hall. You didn’t know their last names, but figured it would be easy to find them with such unique names. But before you could even get through opening the search, there was a buzz-in for you. You stood and made over to the door, hearing Rey’s identifying voice asking you to let her in. It took her a few minutes to get up the stairs, like always, and you were waiting in your doorway for her.

When she finally reached you, you were engulfed in a crushing embrace. “Hey (y/n)! I’ve missed you terribly.” She released you. “So you finally got rid of that scumbag?”

“Y-yeah. I did. He really pushed me beyond the breaking point last night, that unbelievable little rat.” You motioned up at your eye as the two of you went into your apartment.

“OH MY GOD, HE HIT YOU?” Rey almost screeched in your face. She lifted her hands to softly inspect the bruised flesh. “This piece of-”

“It’s not as bad as it was yesterday, Hux fixed it up a little for me.” You smiled. Rey dropped her hands, raising a brow.

“Who is Hux?” She asked.

“Oh, yeah. He’s my neighbour across the hall. Him and his roommate Kylo let me stay with them last night.” Rey gave you a weird look. You sighed. “Nothing fishy, they asked me if I wanted to stay over because of Tyler. They made me tea last night and Hux even yelled at Tyler for me. They’re really nice.”

“I just worry. I mean,” she sighed, “I just don’t want you to get taken advantage of.” She rubbed her hands together, a new energy about her. “So, what do we need to do?”

“Well I need just to clean up and move some stuff around, but I mainly I need to get Tyler’s things out of here. Or at least into a box for him to pick up at some point.” You looked around assessing what else would need to happen.

“Alright. Let's find a box then get to putting his crap in it.” You both nodded in agreement. “Do you have a box or do we need to get one?”

“I think I might have one. Let’s go check the closets.” You headed into the bedroom, looking around your closet for a box, but couldn’t find one. You walked back into the living room, seeing that Rey was at a similar loss. You chewed your lip. “What should we do?”   
“Well, lets put his clothes in a trash bag, and ask your neighbours if they have any boxes for whatever left.” She offered. You nodded, liking her idea.

“Sounds like a plan. Let’s go ahead and get his clothes first.”

The gathering of Tyler’s items was a quick process, he hadn’t taken most of his things out of storage when he had moved in with you. His clothes filled up one trash bag, and various items were splayed out on your living room floor. A majority of them had come from the guest bedroom he had taken over as an ‘office’, which in reality was where he went when angry with you, or when he needed to ‘think’.

You thought briefly about going across the hall and asking Kylo, but decided against it because you didn’t want to bother him. Your phone let out a beep from the other room, a signal that you had received a message. Grabbing the device, you looked at who had sent the message, finding it was Tyler. He asked when he could come over and asked about supposedly talking things out. You told him any time, and to bring a box for his non-clothing items. You felt proud with how well you were holding your guard.

Rey was busy looking through the fridge for assorted snacks while you messaged Tyler back. When she returned, you let her know the news about Tyler coming over for his things. She scrunched her nose.

“That means I have to be in the same building as that scumbag.” She laughed. Munching on a snack, she continued. “What time’s he coming over?”

“I dunno, sometime soon. He never gave me a time. Which is typical.” You shrugged, flopping down on the sofa. Rey sat next to you. “And now we wait.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning- there's a panic attack briefly described towards the middle of this chapter so please skip it if it will trigger you!!

Rey had suggested watching TV to pass the time until Tyler decided to arrive. He never gave you an explicit time, so you were stuck just waiting for him. You decided to go outside for a quick smoke, something you only ever did when very stressed. You left Rey in your apartment to watch over in case Tyler showed up so he could receive his things. You hated smoking out of your window, and needed a moment to step outside for fresh air; er, as fresh as air in your city could be. You couldn’t imagine how tense you’d be without your quick smoke facing Tyler. 

You got to the stairs and couldn’t stop fidgeting with your pack as you descended the flights. You couldn’t hold still for the life of you, nausea fighting to build up, your stomach rolling. Stepping out into the fall breeze outside, you inhaled deeply and tried to calm down. You sat on the bench outside the building, hurriedly lighting a cigarette. The sharp smoke filled your lungs and you felt a little bit better. Your nerves slowed a tad, the bad habit allowing some relief for your current status. You were half way through the cigarette when you heard someone call out your name.

It was Kylo. He looked like he had just been out for a run, in shorts and a hoodie with sweat clad hair. You noted how indescribably attractive he seemed like that. You shook the thought away, scolding yourself for thinking that way after how you soon after it had been that you broke it off with Tyler. He approached you, slightly out of breath and smiling. You took a long drag of your cigarette to avoid having to speak, for fear your voice would crack. You waved at him and he joined you on the bench. 

“May I get one from you?” he asked. You obliged. As he was lighting it, he let out a short laugh. “Never would’ve figured you smoke.” He took a decent puff, letting the smoke out slow. You laughed. 

“I only do it when I’m pretty stressed. Tyler’s coming by soon to get his things- I’m really not ready I think to see him.” Kylo looked at you surprised. 

“One day and you’re already kicking him out?” He took a drag. “I know I’ve barely gotten to know you but that’s so good for you. Be assertive.” He smiled at you. You could feel a blush try to creep its way onto your cheeks. 

“Uhm th-thanks. Really means a lot that you think that.” You had almost finished your ‘cancer stick’ as Rey enjoyed calling them. “Did you just get back from a run?” 

“Yeah, gotta stay in shape ya know? A lot of guys I know worked and drank too much at my age and now they all look like shit. I’m just trying to stay looking this good,” he gestured to his body and you laughed, “for as long as possible.” You both laughed together for a minute at his remarks. 

Your fingers began to fidget and your nerves creeped up on you as you thought back to why you were out on the bench to begin with and your smile faded. Not uncommon, you felt a panic seizing your throat. Your chest seemed incredibly tight and you couldn’t breathe. Your hands began to shake horribly, threatening to drop your cigarette. Kylo looked at your distressed state in complete terror. 

“Hey are you okay? (Y/n)? Hey?!” He tossed his cigarette, stomping out the light in it. He did the same to yours, and began checking your vitals the best he could. Your face paled and you felt very lightheaded. He looked at you crazily and shook your shoulders. “Hey, come on, stay with me, what’s going on?” 

Quietly, you told him you were having a panic attack, shaking from nerves and faintness. His eyes widened in understanding and took his hoodie off to throw it on you. With extra warmth and reassurances for a few minutes you came down from the episode. You felt positively awful having had an episode not only in front of strangers, but also in front of your new friend. Your face had felt numb and it was only as you were attempting to recover that you felt the tears that were streaming down your face. Someone was sobbing ridiculously and it took a moment before you realized it was you. You felt even more shameful as now you were ugly-bawling like a child in front of Kylo. 

He pulled you to a standing position, and wrapped his long arms around you and held you tightly against his chest. You weren’t tall compared to him and you buried your face into his athletic shirt. Your tears were soaking his shirt but you didn’t care. He smelled nice and he was warm and he wasn’t judging you. You broke away after a few minutes to wipe your nose, regrettably on his hoodie. You gave him the most sorrowful smile you had within you, apologizing for the snot now on his hoodie. He laughed. 

“Don’t worry about it. You okay though?” You nodded taking a shaky breath. “Good, good. Do you want me to walk up with you?”

“That’d be great, honestly.” You gave him a half smile. 

The walk up the stairs only took a few minutes but with Kylo and you chatting, it felt like seconds and the walk ended much too soon for your liking. You two stood outside your apartment door in silence for a moment before Kylo cleared his throat and you awkwardly shifted back and forth from foot to foot. You asked him for another hug, which he obliged with a huge smile. You asked him when he wanted the hoodie and told you to keep it. You giggled and told him that you’d just wash it and give it back. As you two broke the hug, a voice sounded from behind you. 

“You have got to be fucking kidding me.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N y'all I'm so SO sorry for how late this one is. Let me know your ideas for what should happen next! Watch out for the drama next chapter (;


	7. Chapter 7

 

You both turned to see Tyler in the stairwell, glaring into your soul. You opened your mouth to explain but he cut you off. “No fucking wonder you broke up with my, you were waiting to whore out to some guy. You letting him move in? That why you’re kicking me out? I thought we could fix this shit, but no. This is fucking nuts, even for your crazy ass.” He spat. Your eyes threatened to spill tears. 

“Tyler that’s not-” 

“Then what is it, huh?” He took a few steps closer. “What is he, ‘just a friend’?” He mocked. “I saw that shit, you’re whoring yourself out to some prick. Who knows just how many guys you’ve run through since last night.” He looked at you in disgust. He stepped forward enough to angrily grasp the your hoodie sleeve. “This his? God, you’ll let anyone in, huh?” 

You were crying ugly again, sobbing out apologies even though you hadn’t done anything. Kylo stood to your left, fuming silently. Tyler’s grip tightened around your wrist and he was practically screaming in your face about how much of a whore you were and how you didn’t deserve the love he had given you over the past few years, etc. It happened so fast that you didn’t even comprehend what was happening until Tyler had let go of you and was on the ground. Kylo was above him, standing, heaving like a madman. 

He crouched and lifted Tyler by his shirt before twisting around to tell you to go inside. You nodded profusely, never seeing anyone that angry so quickly. You darted inside so fast you bumped into Rey who was near the doorway. When she saw you crying she broke out in a worried expression. 

“What’s going on? I heard the commotion- are you alright?” You buried your face into her shoulder, tightly grasping her and she took the hint you didn’t want to talk and just enveloped you in the biggest hug she could muster. 

You didn’t know what was going on, only that Kylo had gone after Tyler most likely for the abuse he spewed in your face. You could only imagine what Kylo was doing to Tyler, he had looked animalistic before you had fled, something primal and undomesticated. After a few minutes, the door opened and a calm Kylo walked in. 

“Where’s his shit?” You gestured the the three bags of miscellaneous crap and the one box and he nodded. He threw each bag out into the hallway and set the box out. He mumbled something to Tyler that you couldn’t hear but he scrambled to grab everything immediately. You noted the large bruising around his eye and the busted lip he now had. Kylo shut the door to your place quietly and turned to face yo and Rey. He cracked a half smile. 

“He shouldn’t be bothering you anytime soon, or anyone for that matter.” He said surely, before rubbing his right hand’s knuckles tenderly. He took a deep breath and rocked back and forth on his heels. 

“So you’re Kylo, the neighbour.” Rey stated more than asked. 

“I am,” He retaliated. “And you are?”

“Rey, best friend and usually the personal asskicker but it seems you taken my place.” The three of you shared a short laugh. You looked at Kylo and admitted to yourself that you hadn’t been attracted to someone so quickly like him. He still looked positively gorgeous with his hair plastered to his face and cheeks still red with anger. 

“Thank you- again.” You smiled. “I’m sorry you had to be involved like this.” 

Kylo snorted. “I involved myself yesterday by inviting you into my home. I’d do anything for a friend, even a recent one.” He shrugged, dismissing the events as out of commonplace for him. He pulled out a cellphone from his pocket and checked something. Cringing, he announced he had to go for something that had to do with his work. He left you and Rey both his number, just in case, but left rather quickly.  As soon as he shut the door on his way out, Rey gave you a look of bewilderment. 

“Who even is that guy?” She rasped, shaking her head. “I don’t trust him. I really don't (nickname).”

You sat on the couch, chewing your lip. “I think there’s a lot more to him than he lets on, but I like him. He’s a good friend as far as I can tell.” 

“I dunno. He seems kind of off…. I don’t know how to feel about him being this close to you after only knowing you for a day.” Rey countered. 

“I mean, I’ve technically known him and his roommate since they’ve moved in, it’s just I’ve never really been super personal until now.” You shrugged, relaxing back into the cushion of the couch. Rey gave up trying to paint Kylo in a bad light anymore, and the subject was dropped. You were surprised that she was willing to let the subject drop so soon, as she usually wanted to be stubborn and try to get you to think her way, which usually she was correct. She only wanted the best for you and you knew that, but it was a bit annoying for her to behave like she was your mother all of the time. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a/n WOWZA two chapters in one day I am on FIRE. There will be a bit of a time gap between the events in this chapter and the next though. FYI.


	8. Chapter 8

Two months later

You hadn’t spoken to Tyler since the incident in the hallway of your building, and had done all you could to block him out of your life and your memory. You had grown close to Kylo and had been to his apartment nearly every chance you were given, sometimes you would just go over to pet Millicent, other times you didn’t even go over to hang out with Kylo, you were hanging with Hux and he would talk about his good-for-nothing subordinates at his hospital and you would patiently listen and tell him, no, he was not overreacting.You went out for drinks at least once a week with Kylo, strictly on a friendly basis and you would talk about mainly work or life aspirations with the man. Once, when he was wasted he told you about his estranged family, a secret conversation you never brought up later on.

Kylo had kissed you once during one such hangout, when he was with you in your apartment drinking and binging a random show on Netflix, he had drunkenly tried to kiss you, missing and kissing your hair instead. You laughed off the incident and helped him back to his place and into bed. The next day he had apologised profusely and you laughed the incident off once again with him. You had fond feelings for him, but you were not ready to actually call them romantic or anything of the sort. It would be a lie if you said you had not laid in bed thinking about him late at night, or daydreamed about him at work when it was slow and you were cleaning.

Rey still held suspicions against the raven haired man, but was slowly warming to him. She had even invited him to go to a movie with your friend group, which you saw as a big success for her. The rest of your friends shared the same apprehension against Kylo, especially since they seemed to know something about him that you and Rey didn’t. Poe and Finn never explicitly said anything that made Kylo a bad person, but they seemed nervous around him and hesitant to befriend him.  
Tonight was like most Friday nights, where Kylo would wait until you were home from your shift at the cafe and you two would binge some random series on Netflix, or marathon a few movies. You decided that since the December air was turning particularly bitter and harsh, you would bundle better. Which included a coat, scarf, gloves, and the hoodie Kylo refused to let you return. You sometimes would match with him, as he bought himself the exact hoodie again. You were sitting on your couch, snacking on some candy in Kylo’s hoodie and a pair of plush pyjama pants. Your knees were brought close to your chest, still cold from outside. A knock a the door informed you that Kylo was here, and you rose slowly from the couch to go open the door.  
You unlocked the door and swung it open to Kylo wearing his pyjamas as well, a plain tee and flannel bottom. He walked by you to set some things he’d brought onto your coffee table. Shutting the door, you joined him, taking a bottle of expensive looking liquor and setting it on the table.

“Kylo we talked about this. Snacks under twenty bucks. Stop outdoing me all of the time.” You mock scolded him, to which he shrugged.

“I don’t like the cheap liquor, sorry.” He laughed. He held up chips and your favourite dip with a big smile. “I brought a peace offering. So now you can’t be mad at me.” He set these on the table with the other snacks you had procured.

“Yeah, yeah.” you mumbled, grabbing the remote to your TV. Your mother had decided for your birthday to get you a TV that had Netflix compatibility because she thought your laptop was hurting your eyes. You grabbed the comforter from your bed off the couch so you and Kylo could sit down and share the large blanket.

“You’re not mad at me are you?” Kylo asked in concern. You shook your head.

“Of course not, Rudolf.” He wrinkled his nose at the nickname. “Stop one-upping me all the time, makes me feel like you do it on purpose.” You laughed at him, snatching the liquor out of his grasp and setting it in the kitchen. You replaced it with some cans of soda on the table.

“What? Why’d you take the best part??” He asked, wide eyed. You shrugged, and he sighed in frustration as you both took your seats on the couch.

Finding what you both wanted to watch took about five minutes, and what you chose was a series the both of you had already finished but you liked it so much that it was selected for another watch. As the show progressed through the night you grew closer to Kylo, eventually you had moved to lay your head on his chest as the two of you half-cuddled on the small sofa. He had lazily wrapped an arm around you and was drawing faint circles on your back. You grew tired, settling closer to Kylo until you were being spooned by the raven haired man. The warmth of him behind you was beginning to lull you to sleep and you tuned out the show to lazily focus on the constant rhythm of his breathing. You shifted sides, so that now you were face-to-chest with Kylo. The position didn’t feel sexual or romantic, just comfortable. You could feel his breath on your face, and soon enough he was lightly snoring. Kylo had his arms loosely around you, and his pulled back hair was beginning to be messy.

After a few minutes, you made sure he was fully asleep before you leaned up to his face, eyes focused on his plump lips. You felt his soft breath fan down your face, and couldn’t help but smile a bit to yourself. You stretched up an inch or so, and pressed your lips softly against his, your nose bumping his. You pulled back quickly, checking worriedly if he had stirred, sighing in relief when he hadn’t moved and was still snoring slightly. You settled back against his chest and fell asleep with a silly smile on your face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N things will probably pick up a bit, in terms of romance so stay tuned (:


	9. Chapter 9

The next morning you were surprised to find yourself sprawled out onto the couch alone. Usually you would wake up to Kylo snoring either on the floor, or next to you on the couch. You pushed yourself up onto your elbows, searching groggily around the apartment. You concluded to yourself he must’ve had something come up that morning. You stood up, scratching a quick itch on your back before heading into your bedroom to throw on other clothes and to shower for brunch plans you’d had with your friends. You stopped the second you saw him, eyes narrowed. 

Kylo had moved to your bed at some point and had stretched his long limbs completely out on the mattress. You rolled your eyes and continued into the bathroom. As you were brushing your teeth, you went back into the bedroom and stared at the snoring man on your bed. Pacing a bit closer, you looked down at his peaceful face. You felt wrong for staring at Kylo in his most vulnerable, but you couldn’t help yourself. Somehow he seemed even more gorgeous as he slept, you noted. 

You held your toothbrush in your mouth and gently shook his shoulder. He didn’t stir. You shook a bit harder and he waved you off and flipped sides mumbling something about wanting to sleep in. You rolled your eyes and grabbed his shoulder, roughly shaking him. “C’mon Kylo, dammit!” You growled at him. He shot up with the blanket still grasped tightly against him, and looked around the room tense and anxious. His face was a bit sweaty and his breathing became heavy. 

When Kylo saw you, he visibly became relaxed and he offered a light smile. “Good morning.” He murmured, rubbing his left eye awake. 

You raised a brow at him. You decided to go finish your tooth brushing in the bathroom. When you returned, Kylo was stretching and you hadn’t realized until then that he was shirtless. He looked incredibly good without a shirt, a sight you’d only seen glimpses of here and there. He was sparse and dark freckles dotted his torso like a constellation. He yawned and ran a hand through his tangled hair, drowsily looking around the room. 

“Where’s my shirt?” he asked, voice thick with sleep. 

“You came in here yourself, figure it out.” You shrugged. He sighed in response. 

“That’s so helpful, thank you for this life changing information.” He laughed, looking around your bedroom for the missing garment. You left him to search while you went back into the living room. 

You yawned as you picked up food wrappers and a few cans of soda, and threw them in the trash. Kylo came out of the bedroom, pulling on the t-shirt and standing by you as you picked up. He was chewing his lip and looked nervous. You lifted a brow at him, but you both said nothing. You disappeared into the kitchen while he was tidying your bed for you and grabbed the liquor you had confiscated. He looked surprised when you returned the item. 

“I can’t believe you’re giving it back.” He visibly relaxed from earlier and held the bottle. “You could’ve kept it, (y/n).” 

“Nah, that shit is gross.” You both laughed and he faked offense. You thought it was weird how easily he fell back into a carefree mood. You suddenly remembered your plans for brunch with Rey and the others. You scrambled quickly into your bedroom without any warning to Kylo. He followed suit. 

“You okay?” He said as he stood in your doorway, hesitating to enter just yet. 

“I have to go to a thing with Rey and them!” You said, tearing through your drawers and trying to find something to wear. You tossed a simple t shirt, flannel, and skinny jeans combo onto the bed and without even thinking, you hurriedly scrambled out of your pants, forgetting Kylo was in the bedroom. You glanced over as you tugged up your pants and saw Kylo staring at you, mouth agape and face reddened. You swallowed. “G-go get dressed, Kylo. You’re driving.” You shooed him out of the room and finished readying yourself. 

Less than ten minutes later you met Kylo in the hall and the two of you went down the many flights of stairs and out to the parking garage. Kylo’s car was the nicest of any friend you’d ever had, and today especially you were thankful for the heated seats. The car ride to the restaurant you were meeting the group at was quiet, mild chit chat and yawning from just having woken up was all that occurred. After parking, Kylo turned to you as he killed the engine. He cleared his voice. 

“So um, about earlier.” You could feel the embarrassment rise to your face as Kylo began his sentence. “Were those  _ Hello Kitty _ panties? Are you twelve?” Kylo began cackling and even more embarrassment  stained your face red. You smacked his arm, refusing to look him in the eyes as you began laughing too. 

“In my defense-” you started. Kylo cut you off. 

“Nah, save it. Let’s go Ms. twelve years old.” Kylo opened his door and stepped out, you following in suit. He locked the car and you walked together to the restaurant, a few buildings down from the parking garage you were in. 


	10. I'm Sorry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY FOR THAT 4 FUCKING MONTH HIATUS BUT I PROMISE I'LL UPDATE MUCH MORE OFTEN THEN THAT. Thank you all for giving this work so much love and I made this one a little bit faster paced to make up for the lack of any action in these chapters.

A brisk breeze is what greeted you and Kylo as you stepped out of the car and you wrapped your jacket tighter around your body. The fabric didn’t do much for you and you still felt miserable. You led the way out of the parking garage and up the street to the small restaurant you were to meet your friends at. When the two of you stepped into the drastically warmer building, Rey waved violently at you for your attention. 

The sweet smile of Finn was to her left, and Poe sat with his aviator shades pushed up on his head to her right. When you got to the table, everyone stood and hugs were exchanged. Kylo stood awkwardly off to the side, unsure of what to do with himself quite yet. Poe sent you a questioning look and gestured with his brow to Kylo. You mouthed you’d talk to him about it later, even though you didn’t know what you would tell him, and chose to sit next to him. Poe held his reserves against Kylo, with Kylo typically not going if Poe was to be there. The two had an unspoken, and unwritten history that neither were letting anyone else in on. This appeased him and a casual smile softened his expression. 

Lunch went by incredibly well, Kylo was comfortably joking with Poe, the two appearing to be making common ground for a little bit of friendship. Rey and Finn talked to you about ‘girl’ things that only made Poe and Kylo tune the conversation in favour of sports or other ‘masculine’ topics. Through many jokes and inside references, Poe and you were on practical fire with another as the divide between the group’s conversation died. You leaned against Poe tenderly, because after all you were very close of friends. Kylo seemed stiff through this and you were oblivious to his clear jealousy. Poe wasn’t. He could see just how infuriated Kylo was, and to spite him, Poe dangled an arm around your shoulders loosely and you didn’t mind one bit. 

The involvement Kylo had began to decrease and the atmosphere slowly died down too. When time was checked and conflicting plans were brought to light, the bill was asked for. After the bill was paid, with Kylo refusing to let anyone pay, your friends and you split back off and went back to your respective cars. 

When you slid into the car with Kylo, he was quietly chewing his lip without much else. He started the car and checked his mirrors excessively, almost as if he was avoiding conversation. The car ride was quiet, which was unusual for Kylo and you typically continue a conversation from lunch or began a whole new one. You didn’t know what prompted the close quarter attitude change, but you didn’t feel the need to ask or bring it up. He probably was thinking about something important. Traffic began to be busy, so the trip which should’ve only been a short while lasted ten extra minutes. Which was spent in awkward and thick silence. The second the car stopped and he parked, his seatbelt was whipped off and he left the car in an instant. The fit took maybe ten whole seconds, leaving you stunned. 

In an almost hurtful twist, Kylo also took off walking without waiting for you to exit the car as per usual. You had to nearly sprint after him to catch up, as he ascended the building stairs with practical fury. You finally caught him after a flight and a half of stairs. You grabbed his shoulder roughly and ripped it back to halt him in his steps. He faced you and took your wrist in his clenched hand. Pain surged from the limb, and you had triggering flashbacks to Tyler, who you had thought you had finally left behind. You staggered back in fear, eye wide and threatening to spill tears. Kylo’s raging expression softened immediately upon seeing what he’d done, and he released your wrist. His mouth opened, stammering out jumbled apologies but the damage had been done. You pushed past him on the stairs, darting up them as fast as you could, Kylo not far behind you. He was quickly gaining distance, trying to atone, half-heartedly begging you to stop running. In your desperation to get up the stairs, you missed one and tripped, palms and knees smacking harshly against the steps. You cried out in pain, eyes streaming with the previous issues’ tears mixed with ones of pain. You shifted onto your back cradling your bleeding palms delicately.

The fall had given Kylo then a chance to catch up with you. He took one of your hands, despite your objections, and looked it over. He repeated the same on the other hands, gently examining the bloody smears. He studied them for a minute or two, and you stared down at his shoes. You felt a light pressure on the left hand’s wound and winced, eyes shooting up to glare and scold him. But you stopped dead in your tracks when you saw Kylo was placing light yet sweet kisses along the cuts, then repeating on the opposite hand. He looked up at you, a soft gaze in the eye, with a somber smile. Light smears of your blood splashed his lips and you felt your face heat up from the sight. 

“I’m sorry…” He said softly. “I didn’t mean to be so inconsiderate.”

“Okay.” You chewed your lip, unable to find a better response. He lightly ghosted his fingers against your wounds, checking on the tenderness. You winced, and he nodded in silent observation.

“What’s the pain, one to ten?” He asked, looking up from your hands and into your eyes.

“About an eight, it really stings.” You averted your gaze, unwilling to meet his gaze. 

“Let’s get back to the apartment. Hux always has a medical grade first aid box under the sink, hopefully he’s got some painkillers somewhere.” Kylo gave you a soft smile and you returned a much less enthusiastic one in return. You let him lift you gently up by your underarms, and he just lifted you straight up, holding you like one picks up a baby. You wrapped your arms around him to prevent falling, and cursed him out for carrying you the whole way up to your floor. He just laughed at your not-so-real anger. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU for reading this. Thank you, thank you, thank you, etc etc. This has been so hard to write and all this feedback has been so amazing


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